Monster
by Spunky0ne
Summary: When Renji is attacked and left dying, Byakuya and Tetsuya resolve to learn what happened. As Kisuke struggles to keep Renji alive, Byakuya and Tetsuya try desperately to discover what Rikichi, the only living witness, may have seen. Meanwhile, something begins to terrorize the Seireitei...perhaps the very thing that injured Renji! yaoi, mpreg, Ren/Bya/Ren, Tetsuya/Rikichi


**Monster**

**By Spunky0ne**

**(A very special birthday gift for Alabirdie! This is Ren/Bya/Ren (Renji in distress) with a sweet side of Tetsuya/Rikichi. They will all be in a heap of trouble when a diabolical enemy attacks Renji, leaving him at death's doorway. Yes, it's yaoi and yes, mpreg. If you don't like, don't read. Enjoy the story! Love, Spunky)**

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**Chapter 1: Broken**

Byakuya left the sixth division at flash step speed and found his cousin just arriving, astride his handsome black stallion. Wordlessly, he launched himself into the air, coming down gently behind the younger Kuchiki and wrapping his arms around Kuchiki Tetsuya's slender waist as a family senkaimon opened before them and the stallion reared, then dashed forward into the precipice world.

"Was there any further information about what happened?" Tetsuya asked over his shoulder, his voice nearly lost in the driving wind created by the stallion, Arashi's swift flash steps.

"No," Byakuya answered, his lips stiffening around the word, "No one is sure exactly what happened. It is only known that Renji reappeared alone but for Rikichi. The reiatsu of the rest of the group disappeared. At this time, they are still labeled as 'missing and presumed dead.' We have nothing on what may have happened to them. We must hope that either Rikichi or Renji is able to give us some kind of information to confirm their whereabouts."

The two went quiet again, Byakuya holding tightly to his cousin and Tetsuya tightening his legs around the body of the flash stepping stallion. They thundered through the darkness, and some time later, turned off and opened a senkaimon into Urahara Kisuke's underground training room. Arashi touched down on the sand, kicking up a cloud of dust as his two shinigami riders swiftly dismounted and climbed the tall ladder that led into Urahara's shop. Tessai met the two as they entered and guided them down the hallway to one of the guest rooms, where a young human girl bent over Renji's unconscious body, her golden power surrounding him as she worked to heal him. Seeing the two who had arrived, Urahara left the girl's side, passing by Rukia and Ichigo, who were healing and comforting the distraught Rikichi.

"What is Renji's condition?" Byakuya asked, his dark eyes straying to his fukutaichou's motionless form.

"I won't lie to you," Kisuke said in a low, worried tone, "It looks real bad. It's not just the wounds. It's the fact that the bastard that got him left a shitload of bad reiatsu in him. I've had him in my healing pool twice and Orihime's been with him all along too. Now, you know my healing pool is not quite as powerful as the one in the royal realm, but you also know they don't usually interfere unless we're in dire straits down here. We're not likely to get another invitation up there, so we have to do what we can with what's here."

"I understand," Byakuya answered, a chill moving swiftly down his spine, "What can we do to save him?"

"Byakuya-san," the shopkeeper said matter-of-factly, "I'm just going to lay it on the line here, no bullshit. We aren't going to be able to save him, not unless something big changes."

"What?" the noble breathed, stiffening.

"Renji is dying. And...unless I can come up with something before that malevolent reiatsu overcomes him, there's not a damn thing anyone can do about it!"

"Then, you find a way to save him!" Byakuya snapped, his dark eyes blazing, "Urahara Kisuke, you of all people know exactly what Abarai Renji means to me."

"I get it," Kisuke said solemnly, "And I'm going to do everything I can to help him. But the bigger question we have to deal with here is what happened to the son of a bitch that injured him. Rikichi says he didn't see what happened, that he came upon Renji after he had been injured, and Renji was alone. Rikichi didn't seem to know what happened to the other squad members either."

"Hmmm..."

Byakuya thought carefully for a moment, then motioned for Tetsuya to join him.

"Byakuya-sama?" Tetsuya queried, his sapphire eyes touching sadly on Renji's inert form.

"Tetsuya, I want you to take Rikichi out of here. Question him thoroughly about what happened, but be cautious not to overly agitate him. He is the lone witness to what happened, as Renji is incapacitated. We need anything he can give us, even small details. Rikichi is close to Renji and is obviously distraught. See what you can do to calm him, then question him."

"Hai," Tetsuya said, bowing briefly, then moving to join Rukia and Ichigo at the inconsolable youth's side.

"It's gonna be okay," Ichigo said, slipping an arm around Rikichi's shoulders, "There's no one better than Orihime and Kisuke to heal Renji. He's gonna be all right."

"I don't know how he can be!" Rikichi managed in a broken voice, tears leaking steadily down his face, "He was barely alive when I found him! And he hasn't moved since. Inoue-san's power should have healed him by now! She can't heal him, can she? Renji-san is dying!"

"It may be that Renji-san is dying," Tetsuya interjected quietly, "But he is still alive right now, and if we want him to have a chance to survive, then we must know all we can about what happened."

Tetsuya paused, noting that Rikichi was holding his sword arm at an odd angle.

"But you've been injured," he went on, moving closer, "Come with me. I will tend to your injury while we speak about what happened."

"I don't know what happened! I told everyone that!" Rikichi sobbed, "I didn't see anything...nothing at all!"

"It is all right if you think that you know nothing of circumstance," Tetsuya assured him, "Please, Rikichi-san, come with me."

He extended a hand and gave the younger man a small smile of encouragement as Rikichi accepted it with his unhurt limb. The two left the guest room and walked down the hallway to the entrance to the underground training ground, where Arashi waited. The stallion raised his head, perking his ears as the two men arrived, then nickered softly in greeting. Tetsuya noted the flicker of interest in Rikichi's sad eyes and his smile widened slightly.

"Have you met my stallion, Arashi?" he asked.

Rikichi shook his head and wiped the tears away from his large brown eyes.

"I have seen you watching over Kuchiki taichou, but we have not met."

"You have good senses," Tetsuya complimented him, coaxing him into sitting down on the ground, then taking a position in front of him and capturing his injured arm gently in one hand, "Most people cannot sense our presence. It is no wonder Byakuya-sama promoted you. You have grown strong since I first observed you."

"You have...observed me?" Rikichi asked, blinking, "But I'm just a..."

"You are a seated officer, who works in the office with Byakuya-sama and I am Byakuya-sama's personal bodyguard. I investigate and observe everyone who is going to be that close to him."

"It is a great honor to be working so closely with Kuchiki taichou and Renji-san. And Renji-san has been helping me with my footwork and sword releases."

"I am aware," Tetsuya noted, loosing his reiatsu and sending it into Rikichi's arm.

As his power flowed into Rikichi's body, Tetsuya closed his eyes, opening his mind to impressions reflecting themselves off of the younger man.

_He is afraid._

_Something horrible happened in front of him._

_Arashi, what can you see?_

The stallion moved closer to the two, stretching out his long neck and snuffling at Rikichi questioningly. Rikichi's eyes widened, then blinked several times. He gave the stallion a tremulous smile and reached up to scratch the black horse behind the ears. Immediately, Arashi let out a sound of equine contentment and rubbed his face against the youth.

_Just the same as you. He is afraid. He has been through something terrible._

"He likes you," Tetsuya commented approvingly

"I get along with most animals," Rikichi commented, "I have more animal friends then shinigami friends."

"Ah," Tetsuya sighed in response, "I too find that animals are easier to connect with than most of my peers."

"Really?" Rikichi asked, looking up at him, then glancing at where Tetsuya's hand continued to gently hold his injured wrist, "But you're so beautiful, Kuchiki-san! I would think you would have a hundred girls interested in you."

Tetsuya chuckled softly, a light blush touching his comely features.

"That's very funny," he said, his smile warming, "But the truth is that because of my past, I cannot return the affections of a female. I certainly have friends like Rukia-chan and Inoue-chan. But I cannot view them as aught but friends."

Rikichi's smile faded and he met Tetsuya's eyes sympathetically.

"Something really bad happened to you, didn't it?" he asked softly.

"Yes, Rikichi-san," Tetsuya admitted, "Something horrible happened to me. I think that...I am not unlike you, in that way. Something horrible happened to you as well, didn't it?"

Rikichi's eyes filled again with tears and he sniffed and nodded.

"I h-have idolized Abarai Renji since I first saw him come through the town I used to live in, in the Rukongai," Rikichi confessed, "I fought for a place in the sixth division so that I could serve underneath him. I even had this tattoo made over my eye to remind myself how I want to grow to be as strong as he is!"

Tetsuya smiled and nodded.

"You...are in love with him, then?"

"Oh...no!" Rikichi said, flushing brightly and shaking his head firmly, "It's not like that, really! Besides, working with Kuchiki taichou and Renji-san, it is clear to me that although they don't ever say it, they seem like they are in love with each other! Truly, I am not interested in Renji-san that way. I'm not interested in anyone that way, because no one's ever really been interested in me."

Tetsuya's eyes filled with sympathy.

"I understand," he said quietly, "What happened to me before made me shy around people. It is hard to make friends, and I was only in love once, a very long time ago. The person I loved died, and I haven't found anyone who loved me like that ever since."

"That's so surprising," Rikichi said, meeting his eyes again, shyly, "You are beautiful and you come from a powerful family."

"I do come from a powerful family," Tetsuya agreed, blushing at the compliment, "But I am somewhat of a family outcast, because I am only half noble. My mother was from the Rukongai. I am looked down on by some family members because of that."

"That's so sad!" Rikichi exclaimed, "You look just like one of them and I can feel how powerful you are. How can they be like that?"

Tetsuya sighed and shook his head in annoyance.

"I do not know. It doesn't make sense to me, but some people are afraid of anyone who is a little different."

The two quieted for several minutes while Tetsuya continued healing the younger shinigami's wrist. Finally, Tetsuya set Rikichi's healed arm in his lap and nodded briefly.

"Be a bit careful for a while," he advised Rikichi, "It is mended, but it will be sore for a while."

"Well, it feels a lot better than it did before," Rikichi said gratefully, "Thank you, Kuchiki-san."

"You should rest now," Tetsuya suggested, rising to remove a small bedroll from Arashi's back.

He rolled out the bedroll, then waited as Rikichi laid down on it. He laid a light blanket over the other youth, then touched his face lightly and invoked a gentle swirl of kido, sending Rikichi off into a comfortable sleep. As he started to remove his hands, a sudden image flashed in his surprised mind.

_"No! Don't!" Rikichi screamed, backing away from something monstrous that stood in front of him, "Stop! Don't do it! Please don't! Please!"_

_He loosed another terrified scream and flash stepped madly, but something struck him hard from behind and he crashed down into darkness._

_"R-renji..." he managed, tearing at the ground with is clawing fingers, "I am...s-sorry!"_

The image in Tetsuya's mind faded, leaving him kneeling silently at the sleeping shinigami's side and considering carefully what he had seen.

"Tetsuya?" said Byakuya's voice, bringing him out of his reverie, "I see that you have taken care of Rikichi. Were you able to learn anything form him?"

"He says that he does not remember anything," Tetsuya said solemnly, "But something tells me that may not be true."

"You mean, he is lying about what happened?" Byakuya asked, "But why would he do that? Rikichi is close to Renji. It wouldn't make sense for him to hold back what he knows."

"I do not think he knows why he can't tell us," Tetsuya went on, "I sensed no sign of willing deception. He is trying to tell us everything, but I fear there is something he is leaving out."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I don't know the importance of it. It may have been a memory or a dream, but when I connected with him to help him fall asleep, as he dropped off, I picked up an image from his mind."

"What did you see?" Byakuya inquired.

"Rikichi-san was backing away from something. I could not make out what it was, but Rikichi-san screamed for whatever it was to stop, then he turned to run, but was stricken with some kind of attack. It was a very quick image and not very detailed. I am sorry I could not make out more."

"That is all right," Byakuya sighed, gazing down at his kneeling cousin and the shinigami beside him, "We will try again later."

"Byakuya-sama, how is Renji-san?" Tetsuya asked, sadness invading his voice, "Is it like Urahara-san said? Is Renji-san dying?"

Byakuya swallowed hard.

"He is," the clan leader said in a carefully controlled voice, "Kisuke is still trying to find a way to save him. We haven't given up. We are still hoping that something can be done. In any case, he is stable, for the moment and Kisuke believes that he will regain consciousness soon. We shall see then if he has anything to add that may be helpful."

"I hope he can give us some clues," Tetsuya said, frowning deeply and turning back to look down at his sleeping charge, "Renji-san is a good friend. I do not want to lose him."

"Nor do I," Byakuya said, lowering his eyes.

A long silence passed between the two before Tetsuya broke it with a softly voice inquiry.

"Will you tell him when he wakes?"

Byakuya sighed and closed his eyes.

"What good would there be in that?" he asked solemnly, "It would burden him to know that this was so painful to me. It would seem selfish in a way. But, at the same time...I..."

He paused, fighting off the tears that stung at the corners of his eyes, "I wouldn't want him to...w-without knowing."

"I understand," Tetsuya said swiftly, carefully avoiding his cousin's gaze as Byakuya regained control of himself, "It is a struggle to know what to do. But I am sure you will do the right thing."

Byakuya accepted the words quietly, then cleared his throat and straightened.

"I want you stay here and watch over Rikichi. He is an important witness. When he wakes, continue to stay near him. I want to know if he remembers anything else that might be useful...and...if that thing that hurt his sword arm comes back for him, I want him to be protected."

"I will protect him," Tetsuya promised, "I will not let anything else bad happen to him!"


End file.
